Learning Styles Again

You are about to check your first university exam grade…Please please let me do well, you’re thinking. Your palms are sweating, your mouth is dry and you’re squinting your eyes in an effort to try and not look at your mark. The page is loading, inch by inch…here it is! WHAT…I got a 52%? The tears start streaming down your face, uncontrollably shivering, scared of what’s to come next. I studied sooo hard for this exam and I’ve never gotten a mark so low in my entire life.

That was my first university mark experience. I was in shock and I didn’t know what to do. Here is the thing, ladies and gentlemen: you can study hard and fail or study less but correctly and ace. That was my problem, I did not study correctly. The moment I changed my learning style, my grades went up to the A’s…I kid you not.

There really is no right way to study…each person varies. But I have a few tips to help you ease into your learning style:

1) Do you learn best when listening to people talk?

- When attending lecture, sit up front to avoid any distractions from people around you
- Record the lecture (ask permission of the Professor first; some do not allow their lectures to be recorded)
- Listen to it again afterwards, fast-forwarding though the parts you're sure about

2) Do you learn best by writing things down?

- Use different coloured pens and highlighters emphasizing different concepts
- Print off your notes as opposed to typing them up…this way you are actively writing as opposed to passively typing (trust me -- there is a difference)
- Use sticky notes to summarize (in point form) what is on a page

3) Do you learn best by reading things?

- Read your lecture notes before and after class
- Read the textbook to look at the same concept from a different teaching perspective and make summary notes

4) Do you learn best by a combination or all of the above? Or are you unsure?

You can use some or all of the tips suggested above and see what works for you.